Will not be easy for Rashid Khan if he plays Test, feels Muralitharan

Sunrisers Hyderabad has been the team to beat in the Indian Premier League since the last edition. They are known to unearth some unknown or little-known talents. Last year they had Bangladeshi pacer Mustafizur Rahman as their premier bowler. He was a revelation for them in IPL 2016. This year, they have roped in the services Afghanistan leggie Rashid Khan. He has responded well by becoming the first player to get the Purple Cap this year.

The SRH spin bowling coach Muttiah Muralitharan looks mighty pleased with their recent signing. As per the recent quotes in the India Today, Muralitharan showered praises on the young leggie. He noted that they were keen on getting Rashid Khan on board since they wanted good spinners in the lineup.

“We wanted an international spinner and there was nobody looking as good. We were looking for some special spinners and we think he is one. We got Thambi as well. Last year we had only 2 spinners and managed only 8 wickets in the season. We wanted to strengthen our spin attack,” said Muralitharan.

He further added that they had been noticing and monitoring the progress of Mohammad Nabi and Rashid Khan. Hence the idea to rope them in was predetermined. “We had seen him and Nabi play in international cricket as well as franchise cricket in other countries,” the former Sri Lanka star quoted.

Recently, there has been news about Afghanistan getting Test status. Murali believes that Test cricket is a different ball game altogether. He noted that in order to succeed in the longest format, Rashid needs to work on his bowling a lot more.

“Afghanistan’s Test ambitions depend on ICC and how they play. But Test cricket is different. He is mainly suited for T20 and ODI cricket where he is a specialist. For Test cricket, there is a long way to go. It’s not as easy where it is a waiting game. It’s not four or ten overs but long spells. We have to see. He will improve because he is still young so he will have his chance,” conceded Muttiah Muralitharan.